Vaibhav Sooryavanshi 'not happy' with impact player role at Rajasthan Royals in IPL 2026, coach confirms

After 200 runs in four innings, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi was dismissed for a golden duck, caught off-guard by Sunrisers Hyderabad's (SRH) debutant Praful Hinge. While the 15-year-old was disappointed after getting out, he is not happy with RR giving him the impact player role in the last two games.

As an impact player, he smashed 26-ball 78 against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), On April 14, he was Sandeep Sharma's substitute. He couldn't pick the short ball from Hinge and the top-edge landed in wicketkeeper Salil Arora's gloves.

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During the game, RR's fielding coach Trevor Penney, revealed that Sooryavanshi is unhappy with the role. The reason behind it is Ferreira passing the fitness test after injury and getting picked ahead of the teenager for his fielding prowess.

“The last game he missed out on, he wasn’t very happy because he loves his fielding. It’s not because he’s a poor fielder,” Penny told the broadcasters during the game at Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Hyderabad.

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“Donovan has passed his fitness test. He broke his collarbone in the SA20. He’s a gun fielder. It’s good to have him back on the field. Sadly, Vaibhav misses out,” he added.

Ferreira’s maiden IPL fifty

Ferreira, who was traded from Delhi Capitals (DC), proved his mettle against SRH. He scored his maiden IPL half-century, rescuing RR from a batting collapse. He walked in to bat when RR were 9/5 with Hinge taking a four-fer in his first two overs. He counter-attacked and hit seven fours and three sixes in his 44-ball 69. His partnership of 118 runs for the sixth wicket with Ravindra Jadeja is the second-highest in IPL history.

It was also the 27-year-old's first double-digit score in the IPL. In 2024, he played two games for RR and didn't get a chance. For DC, he played just one game before getting benched. On RR return, this was his second innings this season.

RR’s next game

After their first defeat of the season, RR will play another away game. They will take on Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at Eden Gardens on April 19. It will be interesting to see if Sooryavanshi is used as an impact player again.